A Lesson on Boundaries with Coworkers
by Kleptokitten
Summary: Hermione receives bad news at an inopportune time and must now find a new date to her cousin's wedding. Draco decides to be a good coworker and help her out. But is he overstepping his boundaries? non-epilogue compliant, set 5 years after Hogwarts.
1. Chapter 1

**My second fanfic story! Hermione receives some bad news at an inopportune time. Maybe her annoying coworker can help her out? Non epilogue compliant, Dramione :) **

**And of course, this all belongs to J.K. Rowling  
**

* * *

Chapter 1.

"Happy Anniversary, Granger."

Draco Malfoy strolled into their joint office at 9:15 with the most extravagant bouquet Hermione had ever seen. She wondered if it could even be called a bouquet. It looked like he had robbed a large nursery of all its roses. And robbed every baby shower ever thrown of their pink bows .

He set it down with a plop on her desk where it took up the entirety of her working space.

"Really, Malfoy. What is the meaning of this?" She tried to sound angry, but her resulting tone was one more of annoyance and exasperation.

"I just told you. Our anniversary." He looked at her like she was stupid.

"We're not even remotely dating. Why would it be our anniversary?" She calmly smoothed out a wrinkle on her gray, knee-length skirt.

"What happened exactly a year ago, Granger?" She silently racked her brain. "You're prayers were answered by the arrival of the most handsome, the most talented, and the most charmingly intelligent office mate possible," he supplied when she didn't immediately answer. "Me."

"You're placement as my coworker and office mate doesn't require any sort of celebration, Malfoy. More like, mourning robes." He frowned only slightly. "I can't believe it's only been a year. It feels like an eternity that I've had to put up with you."

Malfoy's jovial mood didn't seem at all deterred by her air of annoyance. "You know you'd miss me if I was gone. How many office mates do you think would shower you with extravagant gifts such as mine?"

Hermione raised her eyebrows. "You mean gifts like that quill eating plant, or the chocolates that tinted my skin blue for _3 weeks_? And let's not forget this lovely bouquet." She was allergic to roses, and her least favorite color in the world was pink, both facts he was well aware of.

"Never a dull moment with me, Granger. Like I said, you'd miss me." She groaned in frustration and levitated the bouquet onto his desk, giving a barely contained sneeze in the process.

"Whatever, just get rid of it before my allergies go crazy." He vanished it with a pop, and tossed her a vial of clear liquid he'd pulled from the pocket of his finely tailored suit.

"It's Mediwitch Muriel's allergy potion." She eyed it warily. "I promise it's safe. You have permission to hex me if it's not."

"Oh, trust me, I've never needed your permission." She opened it, swallowed it in one gulp, and gave a shudder. "Ugh, horrible stuff, that." It was a testament to the amount of trust they'd built up in the year they'd worked together that she had downed it without further question.

They both settled into their work spaces again, Hermione picking up her quill and continuing to go over the document she had been working on before she'd been interrupted by Draco while he pulled out his laptop and turned it on. They worked in silence for almost a half hour when Ginny Weasley rushed through the open door.

"Oh my God, Hermione, there's no way you're going to believe this, but, they've given me the _Zabini_ case! I wa-" She stopped talking mid-sentence as Draco coughed behind her.

"Yes, Weaslette, I'm here too." He smirked. Ginny, instead of turning beet red, as he expected, turned and glared.

"What are you doing here so early?" He was notoriously late almost everyday. "Why haven't you reported him, Hermione? Why does he still work here?" She demanded.

Malfoy looked like he was ready to launch into a long speech celebrating his amazingness, so in order to avoid it, and the long debate that would likely ensue with him and Ginny, Hermione said, "Nothing would give me more pleasure, Ginny, but he actually does good work. I won't go back to having an idiotic partner like Finch-Fletchley again." Malfoy looked at her, a little shocked at the defense she had just given him, but quickly recovered, looking very pleased with himself.

"I don't know how you manage. I'd have hexed him into oblivion by now." He had no doubt of that.

"So, why the great interest in Zabini's case, miss Weasley?" He hoped the use of her proper last name might entice her to be honest.

"His's the most interesting case that's been on the horizon, I've been up to my neck in the most boring drivel the last 3 months, and, he's got the body of a god." she said without skipping a beat. She laughed at his look of surprise, knowing he hadn't been expecting that. Hermione also chuckled.

"You know, I'll have to pass those compliments on to him, as he is my best friend," said Draco calmly.

"You wouldn't dare. If you do anything to screw my chances up with-I mean, on this case, I'll curse your family jewels off."

"I will make no such promises. And I very highly doubt that the ministry would allow such bodily mutilation to go unpunished."

"Oh, I'd find a way. Just leave it alone, _Ferret_, and you won't have to worry." Draco gave her a threatening eyebrow raise and resumed his work, hoping she'd go away. Hermione went to pick up her quill again. Ginny heard the scratching of it on paper and turned to her friend.

She sat herself on the edge of Hermione's desk. "Hermione, when are you going to give up your archaic ways?"

"What are you talking about?" So, Ginny had decided to choose a new target to attack. And of course, she knew exactly what Ginny was referring to. "Shouldn't you be getting started on your exciting new case?" She said without looking up.

"Even Malfoy has one. Malfoy!"

"What, what do I have?"

"Ginny, you know why I don't have one. And anyway, this is more personal. I hate that the wizarding world is losing that aspect now." Hermione grew frustrated. Not Ginny too...

"That's silly. You can still personalize things, and you don't have to give up owling people. It's just, they do so much more than just that."

"Gin, I grew up in the muggle world. I know how a computer works,"

Draco perked up when he realized what they were talking about. "Ha! I've been trying to tell her the same thing since I got here. Don't even try, she's too stubborn. The more you try, the more she'll say no, just because she doesn't want to give you the satisfaction of saying yes." He received a heavy glare, apparently the mood that had elicited the praise earlier was gone.

"I know, but she'll have to give in eventually. A girl can only try." She looked between the two desks at the pair of them. They were already focusing back on their work. She got up with a sigh, "Speaking of which, I'm going to get back to my very important case. I'll see you, Hermione." Hermione gave her a halfhearted wave, and Ginny was gone, as abruptly as she'd appeared.

Hermione heard a "finally," muttered from Draco.

"You won't really tell Blaise, will you?" Hermione asked cautiously.

"Nah, I just wanted to ruffle her feathers a bit. It's quite fun."

"Like you do with me?" Hermione looked slightly indignant.

"Precisely." And they both proceeded with their work.

* * *

Their owls, both ministry assigned, brown, and boring, came flying through their window at exactly 12:05.

"See, you're not the only one who clings to archaic ways." Draco held up two hand-written letters. "Let's see, this is from my grandmother, and this one...is from my great-great-great-Aunt who lives in Norway. Yes, I can see how you would have something in common with them." He could see Hermione's hackles rising.

He was baiting her, she knew, so she ignored him and opened her own letters. The first was typed and printed, unfortunately, but still better than the alternative. It was from Luna Lovegood, asking to interview her for an article in the quibbler. She wrote a quick response, giving the times she was available to meet with her. The second was a (Handwritten) letter from Mrs. Weasley.

Draco was typing his responses on the computer when he heard a gasp from Hermione. He looked up to see her face, pale, and shocked as she held her letter in a shaking hand. Was Granger...sad? "Hermione, are you-" He started.

"That little bastard!" No, she was angry. Very, very angry.

"What's the Weasel done this time?" He assumed, as always, that it was Ron who'd upset her.

Hermione looked up at him when he said this. "For once, Malfoy, you're right." He was shocked to see tears glistening in her eyes. Angry, sad tears? She hastily wiped them away, but more came behind them. She was obviously trying to maintain her composure. "We're through. For good this time." Upon saying this, the tears came in earnest.

Draco ran a hand through his platinum hair, ruffling it from its well combed style. He levitated some tissues over to her, not sure what else he could do. He wasn't really the comforting sort. And while he and Hermione had some sort of unspoken truce, where they wouldn't say or do anything too insulting or horrible to each other (He constantly flirted with that invisible line, he admitted), they weren't friends. "I'm sorry, Granger. I really am."

"Thanks." She mumbled. When the tears had slowed down (He kept up a steady supply of levitated tissues), she pushed her now slightly tangled hair from her face and said, "I think I'm going to go to lunch now. I need some time alone." He nodded, and she gathered her blazer and purse before heading out the door, heels clacking down the hallway.

When she returned 45 minutes later, she looked much better. The color had come back to her face, and she'd swept her hair up into a messy but cute bun. For some reason, he noticed that she was wearing pearl earrings. They'd been hidden before by her hair. Draco thought they looked nice.

As she got to her desk, she froze. There was another bouquet on her desk. This one was normal sized, however, and had orchids, not roses. It was trimmed with opaque and translucent purple ribbon in a subtle and beautiful way. "Oh..." She stared at it, touching one of the orchids gingerly. "Where did this...did you see who brought this in?" She turned to Draco as she asked.

"Um, no, I actually went and grabbed something at the ministry cafeteria. Got back just before you. Sorry."

She stared at him a moment longer before walking around the desk and sitting. "It was you," she said in an accusatory tone.

He stood up, walking over to examine the flowers himself as he said, "While it is a very tasteful bouquet, and I'd like to take credit for it, no, it was not me. We should check if there's a card or something." They began searching all over it. It was significantly smaller than the "anniversary" bouquet, but it was still fairly large as far as normal bouquets go.

"There's a card, but all it says is: 'You are beautiful'. There's no name." She smiled slightly.

"Maybe they delivered it to the wrong person then, if it says that."

"Malfoy!"

"Sorry, sorry, I couldn't resist." He turned her so she was facing him, and placed a hand on both shoulders. "You know you're a good looking witch, don't let anyone, including me, convince you otherwise." She nodded silently, and he went back around his desk to sit. "That Weasel wasn't worth your time anyways. What'd he do to screw things up anyways?"

She was silent for a moment, and he thought she was going to tell him off for being nosey. Then, she said, "Molly, Mrs. Weasley, wrote to me, because he was too much of a coward. He's...he found someone else. He fell in love. With someone else." She stopped talking and just stared at the ground. He wondered if she'd start crying again.

"Do you know who?"

She shook her head. "The letter didn't say." Hermione walked behind her own desk and sat down to get back to work.

"Hermione?" Her head popped up at the use of her first name. "Did you want to go home? I'm sure Charity wouldn't mind."

She didn't even pause to consider it before saying, "Out of the question. Don't be ridiculous."

"I'm not being ridiculous. You guys were together for almost, what, 5 years?" She looked at him when he said this, wondering how he knew, then realized he probably just counted how long it'd been since the war. Everyone knew that's when she and Ron had finally started dating.

"Well, more or less. If you don't count the many times I got fed up and broke up with him in between." Saying that seemed to remind her or something, and she looked like it made her feel better. "Look, I know I should be more upset, and maybe this does make me an emotionless bitch, as Ron sometimes called me, but I am not that broken up over this. I was shocked, and I'm a little broken-hearted." Draco raised his eyebrows when she said "little". Hermione chose to ignore this. "Things were going downhill for a while, I just refused to admit it." She looked out their window for a moment. "Plus, if I go home, I won't be doing anything. I should keep busy right now."

"If you say so, Granger." He began working on his computer again, and she went to open the last of her 3 letters.

"Oh crap," She said when she'd finished.

"Today is not your day for letters, is it." Draco glanced over at her, making sure she wasn't going to start crying again. He gave a sigh of relief when he saw that she just looked annoyed.  
"What is it this time?"

"It's a note from my mother, reminding me of my cousin's wedding. Tomorrow. I'm supposed to be bringing a date." Again, he was surprised that she'd shared with him.

"Just don't go. Or, just go without a date," he proposed.

"I would if I could, but my cousin...she's bridezilla. She said I'd better actually bring a date this time since she was paying so much per person for the wedding, or she'd...well, she would make me regret it." Hermione turned a bit red, and Draco wondered what Hermione's cousin had threatened.

"'This time'?" He asked.

"Oh, it's her third wedding. The last one was about 3 years ago, and I had broken up with Ron briefly right before the wedding. When I arrived dateless, she was furious." She stood up and began pacing back and forth by their window. The size of their office didn't give her much room. She began talking to herself aloud. "Where could I find a date at this point. I guess I could ask Harry?" She walked over to Draco's desk and stood over him.

"May I help you, Granger?"

"Yes, I need you to email Harry for me. I need an answer quickly."

Draco leaned back with his arms behind his head and smiled. "If only Weaslette were here to witness you asking that."

"Oh shush," Hermione threw back.

"You know you're going to have to get one, even if just to keep up productivity. Everyone is going to find it inconvenient to contact you only via owl."

She rolled her eyes. "I know, I know. I'm just postponing the inevitable. Whatever. Write my email for me. Please," She added as an afterthought. He complied, and received a response a mere 5 minutes later.

"He says he's busy tonight. Something about a-" He glanced at the email again to finish reading it, "-a date with Narcissa Malfoy?" He rolled his eyes. "Really, Potter? 'I can't believe you are doing any sort of favor for Hermione, emailing me. What is really going on? I would know if Ron had broken up with her.'..." Draco stopped reading the email aloud and looked at Hermione. "Just inter-office memo him or something, he's not taking the email seriously, because it's me, obviously."

Hermione rolled her eyes in frustration. She marched out of the doors to find him in person. Ten minutes later, she returned, looking grim.

"He can't go with me. He really has got a date." She saw Draco's look of indignation and quickly said, "not with your mother! Really now. It's with Luna."

"Interesting," commented Draco.

"Well, not interesting to me. I need a date still." She looked at him. "Any ideas?"

He straightened in his chair and smiled in a way that made her slightly uncomfortable. "Why yes, I have the perfect solution. I'll be your date."

Hermione gave an unladylike snort in response. "You're not serious. It's a muggle wedding!" He continued smiling at her. "You'd really do that? For me?"

"Well, I might require one tiny favor from you in return."

"I knew there'd be a catch." She sat down on top of her desk. "What is it?"

"I want to know," He leaned forward on his elbows, and rested his chin in his hands. "What is it your cousin will do if you show up without a date?"

She glowered at him for a moment, considering the probability of finding another date on such short notice. "Fine," His eyes lit up as she said this. "But I won't tell you until after the wedding. And only if you are good."

"Define 'good.'"

"Alright, I'll define it: Not trying to tiptoe around the line of what I find acceptable or not." She got up from her desk top and walked around to sit in her actual chair.

"I'll be on my best behavior. Don't worry." He grinned mischieviously.

Hermione took that as her cue to start worrying. What had she just gotten herself into?

**Please review, just remember I'm new to this! Hope you like it so far!  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Glad you like it so far :) Here's chapter 2 for you, and as always, Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. Enjoy!**

Chapter 2:

"Briiing! Briiing!"

The visitor alert charm was triggered in Hermione's home as Draco Flooed into her fireplace. He stepped out and met with a brick wall blocking his way and a maroon colored chair on which to sit and wait. He heard shuffling on the other side of the wall.

"Granger?"

He thought he heard someone swear under their breath. "Um, hello," came the hesitant response. More shuffling followed.

"Not to be rude or anything, but why is there a great bloody _brick wall_ in my way?" He asked as he sat himself down on the chair.

"Yes, sorry about that. Well. My flat is in a bit of a state at the moment. I'm just trying to, uh, tidy up a bit and I'll let you through. Just give me about 20 minutes and I'll-"

"_20 minutes_?" He shouted in frustration, jumping out of the chair. "Why the hell didn't you do this before I got here?"

"I was, um, doing some work?" She said lamely.

"It's Saturday. And we've no new cases." When she didn't answer, he spoke again. "Granger, did you forget I was coming or something?" Still no answer. He remembered belatedly why he was here in the first place, substituting for another. "Granger," He said more kindly this time, "Are you alright?"

"...No..." She stopped making shuffling noises.

"Just take down the wall and let me through." The chair and the wall vanished a moment later, and his eyes went wide at the scene that was revealed. There was glass strewn behind her, and all over the room were letters and clothing, halfway burned or shredded. One of the chairs was sideways with the upholstery torn part of the way off. Hermione stood in the middle of everything, holding several letters in her hand and looking very bad indeed.

"I...I told you I shouldn't be home alone right now," was all she said in explanation.

He started heading towards her, his shoes crunching on a bit of glass as he went. He wasn't sure what he was going to do -pat her on the back maybe?- but she was even more unsure of his actions, and took a wary step back.

"OUCH!" She cried out suddenly. She picked up her right foot and stared in shock as it bled freely where she'd stepped on a piece of glass. Draco gave a sigh of frustration, and upon reaching her, scooped her up in both arms and crunched his way across the rest of the room to where he assumed the kitchen would be.

Hermione looked at him in shock as he carried her and then carefully set her down on one of her counters. "Why aren't you wearing shoes? Really Granger."

"I wasn't thinking about the glass." She looked away in embarrassment as he held her foot in his hands, methodically checking for any more glass.

"Obviously." He performed a quick healing spell and the wound closed, leaving a thin red line behind, and then cleaned up the blood with a paper towel.

"Thanks," She muttered. Draco looked up from her foot and saw her face. It was tear streaked and slightly dirty, as if she hadn't washed it since yesterday. He realized she probably hadn't. She was wearing the same creme blouse she'd worn to their office, but paired with lime green lounging pants. He touched her hair gingerly, the curls going every which way. It might have been comical except for the look of sadness on her face. It changed to surprise when his hand brushed her curls though.

He pulled his hand away quickly. "You look like shit. Let's get you cleaned up."

"Oh, gee, you really know how to compliment a girl." She glared at him and hopped off the counter, wincing at the tenderness in her foot.

"You go and shower, I'll clean up this mess. What time do we have to be at your cousin's?"

"Not until 2, so we have a little over an hour. We can't just apparate there, you know," she explained when he raised his eyebrows at the amount of time they still had. "I had to take into account the fact that you'd probably stick up your pureblood nose at all types of muggle transportation and we'd have to walk a ways to the location."

"Well, my pureblood nose will just have to deal I suppose. We'll improvise." He started to head back to the living room where the mess was when she stopped him.

"Just clean up the glass," She said quickly. "Don't fix anything. I destroyed it for a reason." He nodded, and she went down the hallway from the kitchen to her bedroom.

He cleaned up the glass in a few minutes with a quick charm, but the room was still a mess. He started gathering some of the pieces of paper, and read a few lines.

'_Dear Hermione, _

_I'm still in Cairo! Haven't managed to make it to Charlie's yet, but the wizarding community is great here! I saw some really cool sites, I'll send you the pictures soon. It wasn't the same without you though. How is it possible to miss someone so badly it hurts? I can't wait to see you, and I hope-_'

The rest of the letter was charred beyond the point of readability. He could make out the words, '_Love, your Ron_' at the bottom though.

They were all Ron's love letters to her, he realized. He felt a little guilty for having read the one, but, not so guilty that he didn't glance at a few others as he gathered them up. They were surprisingly thoughtful and caring. No wonder she'd been broken up after rereading them. He placed them all in a pile on her kitchen table and went back to gather her pictures. Many of them were in the frames from which the glass came from, but were otherwise unharmed. They looked sickeningly happy. The Hermione in one of the pictures kept sneaking a kiss onto Ron's cheek, and Draco could have sworn that the Ron in the picture looked a little bit annoyed. Or maybe that was just how he was feeling, looking at the picture. He took the pictures from their frames and stacked them all next to the letters. The chair he didn't know what to do with, so he sat it upright and transfigured a blanket into a green chair cover for it.

There were several trinkets that had been broken, he assumed by being smashed into the wall, if the dents were any indicator. They looked like souvenirs of some sort. He gathered the pieces of those and placed them, along with the letters and pictures into a plastic bag he found on her dining table. He didn't know what to do with the shredded clothing, so he piled it on Hermione's counter.

He went back into the living room to wait for Hermione, taking a seat in the newly covered green chair. Having never before been in Hermione's apartment, he took the moment to look around. It was unnaturally devoid of personal items, including pictures, but that was to be expected since she'd just chucked most of them at the wall. Otherwise, it was tastefully done up with maroons and earthy greens against cream walls and carpet. It was small, but anything would be small in comparison with Malfoy Manor, he concluded.

It was odd. He'd always imagined her as some eclectic cat collector, sitting at home crocheting doilies or something equally as boring. But now that he looked around, it was normal and orderly. He supposed it made sense, what with her work habits. He heard a "meow", and looked down to where an orange and mangy cat was rubbing his legs. Well, there were no doilies, then. The cat hopped in his lap, and he petted it while he waited.

"Malfoy?" Hermione had appeared in the doorway in a blue dress, he hair still hanging in wet strings around her face. "What are you doing in that chair?"

He jumped up quickly, dumping the cat to the ground and looked up at her. "Ah, see, I told you you'd have something in common with my grandmother! Same fashion style." This distracted Hermione from the chair and she frowned at the comment.

"I don't really have anything else. I, um...Well, I ripped my other dresses apart," she said, embarrassed. "Ron gave them to me."

Draco was somewhat shocked. "You couldn't have saved one and destroyed it after the wedding?" He asked sarcastically.

"I guess I wasn't thinking straight. Sorry."

"Well, you don't need to apologize to me." He glanced at her hair. "What are you planning to do with your hair?"

"No idea. ponytail?" She offered pathetically.

Draco shook his head, "Come on Granger, we'll fix it up. Then I'll take you to the manor and you can borrow one of my mother's dresses."

He started down the hallway, stopping at one of the doors at the end. "This your room?"

"Yes, but please don't go in-" She started, only to have Draco ignore her and turn the knob. He turned to her as they stepped in.

"Come on, I've already seen your living room, what could be worse?" He turned around and saw the room was covered in clothing. Most of the articles closest to him were her unmentionables.

"Not worse...more like, embarrassing..." She covered her face in her hands.

"Leopard print. That's pretty exotic for you, Granger," Said Draco, spotting it on the bed. "Too bad the Weasel's never going to see you in those again."

Hermione rushed over, grabbing the more outlandishly patterned things and threw them into her open closet door, slamming it shut.

"For your information, Ron has never seen me in those before. We, we were waiting." She turned away from him and crossed her arms. He wondered if she might start crying.

He gently pulled her by the hand into her bathroom and sat her down on the closed toilet seat. The blow dryer was underneath the sink along with several brushes and hair products, both muggle and wizard.

"Um, I'm gonna be honest here and say I don't really know what I'm doing." He brushed her hair awkwardly, unsure of how to detangle the mass of curls that were now starting to dry.

"I've never known what I'm doing," said Hermione in a defeated way. "This stuff usually works pretty well, but it smells funky." She handed Draco her sleakeazy potion.

"You know that this stopped being all the rage like 7 years ago?" He set it down. "maybe we should just go to my house right now."

Hermione looked at him in a panic, "Looking like this? No, I can't see your mother like this."

"She won't be there. Even if she was, you know my mother likes you fairly well." She shrugged in defeat and started to stand. He dragged her from the bathroom and towards the fireplace. "Anything else you'll need?"

"Purse," She said, and ran to grab it. When she returned, she had flung her hair up into a bun. "Alright, let's go."

* * *

"Crissie!"

Hermione stepped out of the fireplace at the Manor to hear Draco shouting for someone.

A house elf appeared with a pop. Hermione smiled upon seeing the tiny dress and cap the elf was wearing. She'd been to the manor before (Not counting the time during the war) for a Charity event Narcissa Malfoy had hosted. Lucius was still in prison, although on a much reduced sentence compared with his more devoted deatheater friends. With him out of the way, Narcissa had thrown herself into redeeming the Malfoy name. She had used the Malfoy money to help rebuild the wizarding world after the war, and Hermione had met with her multiple times. An easy friendship had sprung up, but Hermione was still secretly intimidated by her.

"Hello Master Draco, hello miss Granger!" Crissie and Hermione had spoken during the charity event. Hermione had been surprised and pleased to learn of the many changes in elf treatment now that Lucius was gone.

"Crissie, miss Granger needs help with her hair. We're going to a wedding in an hour, and we've got to get ready quickly."

"Yes, I is being very excited to help miss Granger with her hair!" She motioned for them to follow her up the grand staircase at the entrance way.

As Crissie did Hermione's hair, Draco brought in several selections from his mother's closet. "I've never been to a muggle wedding, so I've no idea what's appropriate. I just think this one would look great though." He smirked, holding up a shining slytherin green one that would come to the ground when worn.

"You would pick that one," she said as she rolled her eyes. "It's beautiful, but I think it's a bit much. Go for something more...outdoorsey or sundressy. But still formal."

He returned with cocktail dresses, each a slightly different style. One was sky blue, one was a bright salmon pink, and the last was slytherin green (He couldn't resist).

"That salmon one would be good actually. It might be a bit small in places though." Draco left and grabbed the shoes that went with it. When he returned, Crissie was putting all the products and appliances away.

"Crissie is being finished with miss Granger's hair. Is miss Granger pleased?" She'd done a loose up-do, arranging all the curls in a flattering way with a few strands hanging around her face.

"Yes, thank you very much, Crissie," said Hermione with a warm smile. She grabbed the dress and slipped it on in the bathroom next to the vanity where Crissie had styled her hair. It was a bit tight in the chest and hips (Narcissa was famous for her thin figure), so Hermione used her wand to adjust it. She took one more quick look at herself outside in front of the vanity, then slipped on her heels. "Alright, ready to go? We've still got about 30 minutes, we may still be able to stick with my plan."

Draco didn't answer for a moment. He was looking at her strangely, then said, "We forgot jewelry."

"Oh, you're right...I can floo back to my flat and grab some?" He shook his head.

"There's some here that will work fine." He left the room and returned a moment later with the most beautiful pair of diamond earrings Hermione had ever seen. They were large, but not gaudy. He stepped forward and put them on her. His hands were tickling her ear and neck as they worked, and she had to stifle a giggle, for that and for other reasons. Draco Malfoy was putting what was probably his mother's earrings onto her ears! A year ago, she never would have imagined this was where they'd be. She wondered if this "date" to her cousin's wedding would count as breaking the interoffice dating rule? Either way, they'd definitely overstepped their boundaries as coworkers 100 times over in the last 24 hours. He'd really come through for her, in his own bossy and insulting way. She smiled.

Before he could step back, she placed a hand on his arm and said, "Thank you, Draco."

They stood like that for what was just long enough to be deemed "too long", and awkwardly stepped away. "You ready then?" He asked.

"Yes, let's go." They walked to the front of the Manor and out of the gates where they could apparate. She grabbed his hand and they were gone with a tiny, "pop".

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! please read and review :)  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**This is only my 2nd fanfic, so every time i get a review or alert add, I FEEL SO LOVED ^_^ Thanks guys! you are awesome!**

Chapter 3:

"Well, this is lovely," said Draco, looking around the location they'd apparated to.

They were in an abandoned and dilapidated building. The windows had been broken, and the walls had obscene words graffitied on them. He looked down and noticed several cigarette butts, as well as broken beer bottles.

"Look, your favorite: broken glass," he commented, smirking.

Hermione rolled her eyes, walked quickly out of the already broken front doors and into the blinding sunlight.

They were in a decent part of town, but it was fairly deserted. The building they had come from was the most shabby and neglected on the block. No one noticed they had emerged from it.

Hermione was walking at a fairly fast pace and Draco had to jog to catch up to her. He had to admire her ability to move in those heels. When he was finally next to her, he asked, "So, what's the story you're telling your cousin? About me, that is."

"That we are dating, and have been for some time," She said, looking away from him quickly when she saw his mouth drop open. When she turned to him, his mouth was still open, but the beginnings of a smirk were forming. "That won't be a problem for you, right Mr. Slytherin? Lying is your speciality."

"Nope, not a problem for me. The question is," he began, moving closer to Hermione so as to allow another pedestrian to walk by them, "Can you successfully lie about me?"

"Of course I can! Why do you ask?"

Draco moved so that there was a little more space between them as they walked. "Well, your lying skills are pretty shabby. I think it's the gryffindor in you."

Hermione looked indignant. "For you information, I have lied many times! And successfully! It's how me, Ron and Harry became friends, actually."

Draco was a surprised by this information, but he didn't believe her still. "Fine, hold my hand. Right now." She looked him skeptically, and took the hand he was extending to her. She tried to intertwine their fingers, but It felt strange; like when a person tries to clasp their own hands together, but with their right thumb on top when they usually have their left there. "Stop being so awkward, Granger," he told her.

"Well, maybe we have an awkward relationship," She countered. Understatement of the year, really. "And if we stopped calling each other by our last names, maybe it would be less awkward?"

Draco released her hand with a squeeze as he said, "Eh, I don't know, maybe it's one of our quirks as an awkward couple."

"Fine, Malfoy," She said, emphasizing his name, "Please just don't draw attention to us."

"That wasn't in the rules." He smirked, and he had a glint in his eye that made her worried.

"You are..." She struggled to find the appropriate words, "So, aggravating!"

"This is how I always am. It never bothered you before." He paused, "well, once you got used to putting up to me in the office, that is." It had taken about 6 months for her to turn a blind eye to his ridiculous antics. She didn't look at him, but continued to walk.

"Just, be frustrating all the time, don't switch back and forth!" She shrugged off his hand that he placed on her shoulder. "Like that! Don't do that...it's not the Malfoy I know."

"Would you have preferred me to be heartless and annoying when I got to your flat earlier?" He asked in irritated voice. She had the decency to look a bit guilty. "Somehow, I don't think you would have. Look," He stopped them from walking and turned to her, "I know I'm aggravating at times. Well, most of the time. It's just, I get a kick out of seeing your face like this."

"Like what?" Her hands flew to her cheeks in embarrassment.

"Well, you're brow gets all furrowed, and your cheeks turn pink. But," he pulled her hands away from her face," that's beside the point. The irritating me is the one who you always see. But you should also know, I'm not heartless."

"I'm sorry, I just...it confused me." He wondered what she meant by that. She stared at the ground for a bit.

"Why don't you just tell them the truth?" Asked Draco.

"The truth?"

"Yeah, that you're not dating Ron, and that I am your coworker and friend who came with you instead." He hoped she wouldn't get mad at the "friend" part. They were now, weren't they? He'd carried her over broken glass, for merlin's sake.

"I'd prefer to do that, but Janelle, my cousin, would give me a hard time about Ron. Did I mention I don't really like her very much?"

"Then let's lie away. I'm not really liking this Janelle either. And I haven't even met her yet."

Hermione gave a tiny smile then said, "Well, let's get moving, we still have about 15 minutes, and we've got almost a mile to walk."

* * *

By this time, they were on the edge of town, next to open country with very few houses in site. There were tall trees everywhere, and as it was late spring, several of them were full of green leaves and colorful blossoms. Their sweet smell drifted down to Hermione and Draco as they walked, lightening the mood.

"You probably shouldn't have anything to drink," said Hermione, breaking the silence. "You might let something slip on accident. About the wizarding world, you know."

"I'm not a light weight, Granger. I'll be fine. Don't worry."

"Well, just to be on the safe side. It's easier for me, since I grew up in the muggle world."

"Oh, so you're going to have some, but I can't?" Draco looked like a pouting child.

"Oh, quite whining. I wasn't planning on having anything anyway." Her attempt at conversation wasn't going as planned.

"I have an idea. Let's not drink anything at the wedding, then go back to the manor and get completely wasted." He said this with such enthusiasm that Hermione wasn't sure if he was serious or not.

"That's definitely crossing the line, Malfoy."

"What line?" He asked.

"That would be totally inappropriate for coworkers to do." She saw a glint in his eye and realized that he had been joking. She sighed. With him, she never knew.

"As opposed to going as a date to a wedding. That's only somewhat inappropriate, so it's ok?" He smirked at her blush.

"It was your idea." They arrived at a beautiful wooden fence and gate, and a driveway that led to a lodge surrounded by more of those delightful smelling trees. "This is the place, come on."

There were already many people there, and Draco and Hermione joined the crowds outside that were finding seating.

"No, not this side, we're friends of the bride," chastised Hermione, and moved on to the other side.

"How was I supposed to know? This is a muggle wedding!"

"Shhh! Don't say that here!" Hermione looked around worriedly as they took their seats. People were staring at Draco.

"Malfoy, people are staring now. I told you to be careful!" She whispered in his ear furiously. Draco also looked around, then chuckled.

"They're only staring because they think I'm bloody gorgeous." He smirked. When Hermione didn't look convinced, he made her follow his gaze. "Look, see that woman over there? And that brunette over by the bar? And that short fat girl a few rows down? Notice a theme here?"

"Don't be so conceited. There are men staring too!"

"Yes, but not at me." He really did love when she blushed like that.

She supposed maybe she was overreacting, and maybe they were staring at Draco because (she gulped as she looked him) he really did look very handsome in his black suit with his platinum blond hair. She wasn't so sure about his comment about the men staring at her though. Maybe her hair had come unpinned and was now flailing around? She moved her arms to check.

"Quit doing that, the ceremony is starting." She reluctantly stopped, satisfied that her hair was still holding and watched the wedding procession.

"I think I may like your cousin after all," whispered Draco in her ear as the bridesmaids walked up. They were all wearing shimmering green gowns.

* * *

The wedding was over and the bride and groom were making their way around to the guests seated at tables. He saw Hermione's brow furrow more and more as Janelle came closer with every greeting.

"Hermione!" Janelle swooped in and gave her a rib cracking hug.

"Hey Janelle, congratulations!" She gushed. Draco was impressed with the amount of enthusiasm she managed to procure.

"So glad you were able to make it! And where's that redhead of yours?" She pretended to glance around, waiting for Hermione to introduce her to Draco.

He felt Hermione's hand on his shoulder and rose to greet Janelle, "Janelle, this is my boyfriend, Draco Malfoy." He gave Janelle his most mesmerizing look, smiling with one side of his mouth more upturned than the other, and not blinking his gray eyes as she stared at him.

"It's wonderful to meet you Janelle. Congratulations on your marraige, it was lovely, and you look absolutely beautiful." Hermione's mouth dropped open, but she quickly close it.

"Well, thank you, Draco is it?" He nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you too." She was blushing fiercely, and Hermione cleared her throat loudly. "Oh, Hermione, you remember Steven?" She brought her new husband over to meet them both. As Draco and Steven were introducing themselves, Janelle leaned over to Hermione and whispered, "Oh My God, Hermione! Draco is absolutely gorgeous! Where did you find him?"

"He um, well, we work together, it sort of just ...happened?" Hermione stuttered out.

"What just happened, darling?" Draco had turned his attention back to Hermione now, and placed his arm around her, much to her chagrin. She tried not to look distraught about it and plastered a smile on her face.

"I was just telling Janelle how we met, dear," She said sweetly.

"When you say 'just happened', you wouldn't be talking about our first kiss, would you?"

Janelle, who really should have been moving on to greet her other guests, squatted down in her white dress and said, "Oh, do tell! How did it happen?"

Hermione turned so just Draco could see her face and gave him the most menacing glare she could muster. Turning back to Janelle with a smile, she said, "Well, we were just arguing, like any normal day at the office. He was being pig-headed about something or other," Hermione could feel Draco's arm tighten around her as she continued to speak, "and I looked at him, fed up with all his talking, grabbed him, and kissed him to shut him up!"

"Only thing was," cut in Draco, "Once she tasted me, she couldn't stop." He smiled suggestively. He looked so convincing, Hermione was afraid he might kiss _her_ right then to shut her up.

"He wishes that's all it took," said Hermione.

"Ohh..." Said Janelle. "well, I've got to keep moving, but, I look forward to talking to you later, Cousin." She smiled and moved on to her other guests.

"I like her," said Draco when she was out of earshot. "She's so nice!"

"Oh, shut it," mumbled Hermione. "You only like her because she was drooling on you in front of her new husband."

* * *

No one talked too much to either of them, aside from a few great aunts and other distant relations making the proper introductions, and the people at their table were polite, but not overly inquisitive. In light of this, Hermione adjusted her original rule and allowed herself some wine. Draco took this as his cue that he was now allowed at the open bar.

"We're still planning on crashing at my house with a couple bottles, right?" He smiled as Hermione sipped her wine daintily. There was a family of 4 and another couple at their table, and the father kept cracking joke after joke. After a few beers, Malfoy was laughing more openly, but not in an obnoxious way. Hermione was actually beginning to enjoy herself. She wondered if Malfoy even understood the jokes, as some of them were about muggle things.

Music started (a live band that seemed to really like Katy perry covers) and most of the people got up for the dance floor. Hermione wasn't one for dancing, and Malfoy didn't know any of the muggle songs, so they stayed seated. "Are you sure you don't want to go dance? It looks like fun. These muggles really know how to throw a party." He ignored her frown at his mention of the word muggle. No one was even near them to overhear. She wondered if it was the alcohol in him, but he kept swaying to the music as if it were irresistible. He stood suddenly, and grabbed her hand.

"Malfoy, NO! What are you doing?" She put all her weight into keeping herself seated.

"Quit being a spoil sport! Come on, Live a little!" He yanked her with such force that she was launched from the table into his arms and their momentum carried them to the dance floor. She stopped struggling and stood awkwardly for a few moments as Draco started dancing. "You're on a dance floor, you should be dancing!" He shouted over the music. She started moving her hips and feet a little, unsure of their movements, copying the girls around her. "You have no idea what you're doing, do you?" He looked like he was going to laugh.

"I don't really dance much!" She shouted in response. "Ron never took me anywhere, and he hated dancing at events!" It was funny, that was the first she'd thought about Ron since her cousin's mention of him when she greeted them earlier. Draco saw her begin to scowl and realized where her thoughts were going.

"Just follow me!" He moved closer to her putting his hands above her hips and helping her move to the music. Once she had the rhythm, he took her hands. He twirled her a few times for fun, and soon she was laughing and getting into it. When YMCA was played, she showed Draco the moves and they giggled together as the whole crowd took part. It grew dark enough that sparkling white lights suddenly shone everywhere, adding a magical quality to the atmosphere.

A slower song came on, and Draco grabbed her before she could run off the dance floor like he could tell she was planning, and pulled her close. "Now this type of dancing, I know you can do." They swayed slowly back and forth, and her discomfort faded a bit. Or, at least until his hands scooted dangerously low on her back.

"Hey!" She gave him a warning.

"Just, testing my boundaries," he chuckled. He released her and had her do a slow twirl. When he brought her back up close she looked up at his face. It was very close. He seemed to have noticed this too, and his hands tightened around her waist. His face was even closer now. Hermione held her breath, unsure of what she should do. She was on the verge of pushing him away when the song ended.

The band singer spoke into the mike. "Alright, it's that time of the night! Let's get the bride and groom up here and cut the cake!" Hermione and Draco backed away from each other, and walked over to watch. He kept his hand on her waist as they stood there.

"I hope she smashes the cake into his face," said Hermione, hoping to break the tension between them. It was a different tension, unlike the one's that were left after a fight.

"Why would she do that?" Draco's face was unreadable now.

"Muggle tradition," She whispered. "Some say it's bad luck, but I think it's good. Show's she won't take any crap from her husband. And that they know how to have fun."

They watched in rapt attention as Janelle slowly cut the first bite from their piece of cake, picked it up with her fingers, and brought it closer and closer to Steve's face. At the very last moment, when he thought he was safe, she smooshed it onto the outside of his mouth and smeared it around. Laughter erupted everywhere, as well as cheering. Steve good naturedly fed the cake to Janelle, only wiping a tiny bit on her nose in good humor, an action which brought a few chuckles from the crowd (and a lot of kissing from Janelle).

"Will you smoosh cake in your husband's face on his wedding day?" Asked Draco as they walked back to their seats.

"Of course!"

"And what about your husband, do you think he'll smoosh cake in your face?"

She smirked, "He better, otherwise, why am I marrying him?" He laughed at that. When they'd reached their seats, the band singer was back at the mike with another announcement.

"I want all the single ladies up at the front of the stage! If you don't have a ring on that finger, that means you!" All the girls rushed up to the front.

"I guess that's me. This is the bouquet toss, another muggle tradition." Hermione got up to join them. She stood fairly far in the back of the crowd, looking uninterested. Janelle turned around and tossed her bouquet with surprising strength, and it soared over the crowd of girls and into Hermione's arms. "Oh! I got it!" She looked surprised, but pleased.

"Alright," said the band singer once more, "Let's get those single men!" Draco walked over as the crowd of girls dispersed. Many of them eyed Draco, happy that he was part of the "single" crowd. He watched in amusement as Steve sat Janelle down in a chair at the center of the dance floor in front of the stage, then in barely contained shock as Steve put his head under her dress to obtain her garter with his teeth. He emerged, successful, and waved it around his head in victory.

As Hermione watched the single men line up, she felt a knot of worry in her stomach at the thought of Draco catching the garter. She comforted herself with the thought that at least he wouldn't know what it signified.

Steve turned around, and shot the garter backwards, and of course, straight into Draco's hand. Hermione groaned, but joined him at the center stage as she knew she'd be expected to do.

"How cute is this everyone, it turns out these two," The singer motioned to Draco and Hermione, "Are actually dating already! You know what that means! I'd watch out little lady!" He winked at Hermione.

"What does he mean by that?" whispered Draco.

"Nothing really, just that apparently that means we are going to be the next people to be married. Another silly muggle superstition." Draco raised his eyebrows at this. "Come on, we've got to take pictures with the bride and groom now that we've caught the bouquet and garter."

"I like all these traditions, keeps things interesting." They posed for several pictures, most of them with Janelle oggling Draco, and they were set free to join the others on the dance floor again.

They began dancing again, but it was as if they started where they'd left off. Hermione couldn't look at Draco, and she began to feel uncomfortable with his hands on her. "We should probably leave soon," she said suddenly. "All the important stuff has happened, we don't need to stick around."

"But I-ok," said Draco. He let Hermione drag him to Janelle and Steve to say goodbye, and then towards the back of the lodge. When they were halfway around the building, he stopped her.

"Granger, are you ok? You seem...upset?" Draco tried to read her expression, but the shadow from the branches of a nearby tree blocked most of the moonlight from her face.

"I'm fine." He could tell by her tone that she was obviously not fine.

"Like I said earlier, Granger, you aren't much good at lying." He took her hand softly as he said, "tell me what's wrong. Is it Ron?"

She removed her hand from his, "No, it's not. Really, let's just keep walking."

He grabbed her shoulders to prevent her from doing so. "Not until you tell me what's wrong." She looked at him, suddenly unable to move as she stared into his eyes. Her lips moved, but nothing came out. She licked them, and tried again.

"Granger," he started to say, then softly, "Hermione." He took a hand from her shoulder and brought it up to her cheek, cupping it gently. She seemed frozen still.

"Draco?" was all she managed to get out, and then he lowered his head a short distance until his lips were pressed against hers.

It was brief, because suddenly Hermione was mobile again, pushing him away.

She backed up quickly, a look of panic on her face, and apparated with a 'pop', leaving Draco all alone in the dark.

**Hope you enjoyed this one! Read and Review)  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! Sorry it's taken so long to update! I actually left the country for a while, and couldn't access my account. I hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 4:

Hermione sat on her bed in a daze. She slowly brought her hand up to her lips, hardly daring to believe who had just kissed them. She tried to process her whirling emotions; shock and humiliation had flitted through her mind over the brief encounter. Anger, however, was what emotion she decidedly settled upon.

What leaps and bounds their relationship had taken today she thought they could handle. Up until the last moments, every development had been positive. But this kiss...it was crossing too many lines, overstepping too many boundaries, most importantly her own heart's. A heart that had only the day before been broken, something he was well aware of. Or should have been. _For heaven's sake, that's why he was there with me in the first place! Because Ron couldn't be!_

He'd really come through for her... But within 24 hours, he'd managed to betray the friendship he'd just started.

How could they continue working together now? She didn't know. But they'd have to try. She supposed it couldn't be any worse than when they had started working in the same office as enemies. But, back then, he hadn't betrayed her. _You have to first befriend someone to betray them_, she thought bitterly.

She wasn't sure about facing him at work after the weekend, but she knew if he showed up now she'd see red.

As if on cue, as she finished this thought, a familiar sound filled the air. "Riiing, riiiiing"

Her visitor alarm was blaring loudly again. She rose from her bed and made her way downstairs, still wearing her wedding attire.

"Who is it?" She asked, hoping it wasn't who she thought.

"Hermione." He sounded desperate and pleading. "Please, take down the wall so we can talk. I need to explain."

"Explain what? Why you kissed a girl who was emotionally distraught over the fact that her boyfriend of 5 years had broken up with her just the day before? Yes, please explain."

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry...I wasn't thinking straight. Please just take down this wall."

"No"

Draco sighed on the other side of the wall. "Well, I'm not going away, I'll just sit on this comfy chair that's been conveniently placed here, until you are ready." She heard him sit down, and with a mutter of a spell, she caused his chair to vanish. A satisfying thump reached her ears.

"Ouch!"

"Please leave."

"Not until you let me explain. I don't want to go to work on Monday letting this sit and fester. I know you, Granger, you're a thinker. So, you're going to sit around, thinking about this and getting angrier and angrier, coming up with wild reasons." She knew he was right, but she couldn't let him know that. "I know that because I'm the same way. And I need to know why YOU did certain things, otherwise, I'm going to be thinking all day tomorrow and getting more and more confused."

This caught her off guard. What could she have possibly have done to confuse him?

"How dare you accuse me of that!" She was seriously considering removing the wall now, if only to pummel him with her fists. Her behavior at the wedding was very obviously that of a heartbroken girl not looking for romance.

"Really, Granger, you know me well enough to know I don't like being rejected. I wouldn't have tried anything if I didn't think...well, you know. That things were a bit reciprocated." She was silent for a long time as she considered the truth in his statement, and finally began to doubt her own claims.

"You're thinking about things, aren't you. You could save yourself the trouble of confusing yourself with a one-sided story and talk to me. I don't really like having a one-sided story either."

With a sigh she vanished the wall, and Draco, who had apparently been leaning against it, fell sideways onto the floor with a crash.

"I feel, at least for the moment, that that was very much deserved." She barely managed to hide a satisfied grin.

Draco picked himself up off the ground and stood awkwardly before her. "So, maybe we should sit down?" He suggested.

"I'd prefer to stand, thanks." She indicated a chair for him (not the green one he'd accidentally sat in earlier) and said, "but please, if you'd like to." He complied and instantly regretted it, since she was about a foot taller than him in this position. "So, what did you want to talk about then? Your lack of sensitivity? Idiocy?"

"I want to know why, if you really didn't want to be kissed, you gave me encouragement."

Hermione was dumbfounded. "Encouragement?! Don't be ridiculous! I never gave you encouragement! You have issues with reading human social interactions."

"No, I don't. I'm fairly perceptive." He had the audacity to look a little smug. "You just have issues with expressing yourself and understanding your own emotions."

"You insufferable little cretin! What is the normal response for a girl who's just been dumped by her boyfriend of 5 years? To be heartbroken!"

"Well, according to you, you weren't that broken up."

"But you came to my house! You saw how upset I was!"

"And there's your proof that you don't understand yourself that well." He stood up, and she hated how calm and collected he looked now. "See, you thought that I was just your coworker, and that you would be upset over Ron all evening. But instead, you found that you enjoyed my company so much, you barely even thought of him. You found me, charming, fun, dare I say, attractive?" He waggled his eyebrows.

Hermione guffawed. Yet, despite the ludicrous tone and egotistic expression he used, he was right. Though she'd never admit that she thought he was attractive. "So what if I had a good time. It means you were doing your job. It doesn't mean that you could kiss me!" She looked at him, still angry, but curious now, as to what his ridiculous reasoning would be.

"On the dance floor. I drew you close. I almost kissed you, you never protested." He stepped forward as he spoke. "When we left, you acted like you were going to kiss me too." She stared at him in confusion. Seeing this, he sighed. "I misread things I guess. But I should have been more careful, I'm sorry." He lowered his voice so she could just barely hear him say, "I just wanted you to be telling me those things too much."

Hermione was silent. She hadn't protested, it was true. She thought back to the moment under the tree, where she'd been tongue tied and confused by his chivalrous behavior. In all honesty, she was most alarmed by how much she liked that nice side of him, and angry with him for still being his snide self half of he time. She backtracked as she realized the last thing he'd said. He'd wanted her to tell him it was okay to kiss her.

"Wait...Draco, why on earth would you kiss me? Whether I'm broken-hearted or not, I would think I'd be the last person you'd want to kiss."

He looked at her for a moment before saying, "well, I guess there's a lot about me you don't know."

She wanted to pursue the question, but she was half afraid of the answer, and she knew his first response was evasive. "I'm still angry with you, for being so thoughtless. But I'm glad that you 'stopped by' or rather, forced entry to my home, to explain. Anyways, I'm sorry if I...gave you the wrong impression." She lit the fire for him in the fireplace and handed him her floo powder. "You should probably go. I'll see you at work on Monday I suppose. "

He reached out his hand and squeezed her shoulder in a friendly gesture. It made her slightly uncomfortable. "I thought we'd progressed to being friends this weekend. Is that still true?"

She shrugged and gave him a strained smile. "We'll see." He also grinned, though more sincerely, and took the floo powder from her.

"Alright. Call that red Headed fireball of yours, Weaslette. Have a boy bashing party, and eat lots of ice cream. I'll see you on Monday. And Hermione? I hope you'll forgive me."

He stepped into the fireplace and was gone in a flash of green.

Hermione stared at the flames for a long time after they had returned to their normal color. She wasn't nearly as angry as before, though if he thought she'd fully forgive him any time soon for the loop he'd thrown her for, he had another thing coming. In the place of her anger, she was now left with a lot of questions. A whole lot of questions.

* * *

Hermione did invite Ginny over, though she was still debating whether to tell her the whole thing. She popped some magically whipped up cookie dough into the oven, checked the freezer for ice cream, and plopped down on her couch to wait for her friend.

Ginny didn't like Draco. That was a sure fact. Hermione already knew how she'd react to what had happened, so she knew Ginny would try to persuade her to take an unforgiving outlook on the situation. But, Hermione really needed to spill to someone, and Ginny was one of her only good friends who she could even consider telling. Telling Harry or Ron about her boy problems was almost laughable. As the visitor alarm went off, Hermione had reached a solution.

Ginny stepped out into the living room wearing red pajamas and carrying several bags of sweets and snacks. Hermione had made her wards so that Harry, most of the order members, and any of the Weasley's could floo to house without triggering the intruder wall.

"Hey girl! What's the occasion?"

"Occasion? I need a specific reason for wanting to hang out with my best girl friend?" Hermione attempted to play cool for a moment.

"Well, in the case of Hermione Granger, the busiest most workaholic person I know...yes." Ginny smirked, and ran forward to hug her friend. "I don't care the reason, I'm just glad to see you outside of work." Hermione took her bags and led Ginny to the kitchen. The cookies were almost done and the smell was overwhelmingly delicious.

They caught up a bit on their lives while Hermione removed the cookies and got bowls for all their junk food. Ginny told Hermione about Harry's strange behavior lately, and how she suspected he was finally dating someone but didn't want her to know. Hermione told Ginny about seeing Blaise at the local wizarding coffee shop with his mother in tow, which, of course, Ginny loved hearing about. Both were reveling in the privacy of a home that Hermione's joint office with Draco couldn't offer for girl talks such as these. Hermione almost forgot why she had invited her friend over in the first place until Ginny finally said, as they were bringing all the snacks into the living room, "So...this is about my brother...isn't it."

Hermione set down her bowl of chips and faced her red-headed friend with a sigh. "Kind of. How long have you known? About...well, about him being in love with someone else." It was hard to actually say the words. Her throat became strangely closed and thick, and she had to swallow a few times to push down the overwhelming urge to cry suddenly.

"Not long. I wanted to tell you, but I knew it wasn't my place. I tried to get Ron to tell you, but he said that he didn't know how." They both sat down on the couch. "I thought he was being such a coward. But, he finally told you!" She said brightly.

"No, Gin. He didn't. Your mum did." Hermione reached out and took a chip.

Ginny's face was in shock. "My mother? Ronald is such as ass. I can't believe he had the gall to have mum tell you instead of him." She grabbed a chip as well, eating it furiously before asking, "So, how'd she tell you?"

"By owl. Actually, right after you left yesterday. Come to think of it, she never said he'd asked her to relay the information. I wonder if he even knows that I know..." Somehow this information made her smile smugly. Ginny looked at her, a little confused at her smirk.

"You've been spending too much time with Malfoy. His smirk is rubbing off on you. What's got you so happy all of a sudden?" At the mention of Draco, Hermione's smirk was gone, but she remembered why she had wanted to talk to Ginny in the first place.

"Oh, it's nothing. But really, I should tell you that as tough as hearing about your brother was...it's not what I asked you here to talk about."

"Really?"

"Really." Hermione relayed the events of that day to her friend, carefully leaving out Draco's name as she described the wedding, her date's kindness, and her confusion and anger at him when he had kissed her.

"Wow...that's...tough." Ginny seemed at loss for words. "And you're not sure if you gave him encouragement or not?" Hermione shook her head.

"I didn't think so at the time, but they insisted I had given some, or at least not protested anything during the evening."

"Well, personally, I think they were a git for kissing you at all at a time like this. But, I excuse them if they were drunk, or desperately in love with you. Otherwise, I think me and my wand need to pay them a visit, leave them some lovely hexes to let them know that's not how they treat Hermione Granger!" They both laughed at this.

_That explains it then!_ Thought Hermione._ He was drunk!_ It was a relief to finally realize what had caused him to act so strangely. And it also meant she could return to being his coworker on Monday without being so angry.

"What did you say his name was?" Asked Ginny.

"I didn't. And...I'm not going to say, sorry. Not yet, anyways."

"...Did you at least enjoy the kiss?"

"Merlin's beard, Ginny!" She hit her friend with a pillow.

"It's very important information!" They both giggled again. Popping in one of Hermione's DVD's, they snuggled under a blanket and settled in for the rest of the evening.

**Sorry this one's a bit short, but more to come soon! Don't worry :) Please Read and Review! **


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